i just got this nice Vantage guitar the other day and i cannot identify exactly what model guitar this one is. it has some pickups like i haven't seen before and i wonder has anyone here seen one like this?

from the readings i get from the ohm meter, it seems that the middle and neck pickups may be double coil pickups. the switches appear to be replacements but it looks like the guitar was originally set up with 3 switches. installed now are 3 (mismatched) ON-OFF-ON switches, one for each pickup to select: single coil-off-double coil. 2 of the 3 switches do not work correctly due to incorrect wiring of the replacement switches, the humbucker is only on off and the neck pickup is only on in one position. i am going to replace the switches with 3 that match and then rewire for correct operation.

i'm not sure if this is the original neckplate

the headstock looks like there was a sticker on the back. not sure if it from a label or some junk the previous owner had stuck on there. gotoh tuners, not vantage branded so probably replacements too

aside from some damage to the strap button and the bottom edge and the wiring issues, the guitar is very nice.

I have the same guitar in the metallic/smoke gray color and it is a great player and is a heavy one to boot. I am still researching it also but it does favor the Avenger models very much. Scored mine from a local Pawn shop for $25 but it needed a very laborous cleaning and setup to bring back it's beauty again. I will try to post some pics in the next day or so. Nice Axe you have.

Thats interesting, it sure looks Avengerish but the body is a tad bit different from the Avengers. Like Ice said, the Matsumoku forum should be helpful, they are quite knowledgeable over there. Odd pickup covers as well. It is possible its a Vantage neck on a non Vantage body. Especially if the neck plate isn't original, didn't the Avengers all have the V symbol on the neck plate?

If it looks 80s/pointy at all, it is probably a MIK resurrection of the Vantage name.

Most of their models had obvious wood grain under transparent stains, but not all. If it had a trem, however, it was ONLY 6-screw vintage trems. Some TOMs, but mostly hardtail (non-trem Fender style) bridges.

I'll take a look at this after I get home from work, in case the pictures were blocked by the work LAN.

Well bear with me. The reason I mention it - I had a MIK 1987/1988 Vantage with a clearcoated maple neck. NO SCARF JOINT. The tall foreheads over at the Mats site hemmed and hawed and decreed that it was a MIK likely... (no big surprise in the case of my guitar because of the lack of MIJ stamping on the backplate) however it may have been assembled with a MIJ neck. Theories abound.

Bottom line is what you will hear many of "us" say (right John): MIK or MIJ, this guitar is sweet; a keeper. The nonscarfed neck would have simply added some weight to the argument.

just having fun, it is all like a detective operation trying to figure out where these wonderful guitars come from. i do appreciate all the input from anyone who takes the time to comment here.

bottom line is: she plays nice and sounds great. this one is definitely a keeper.

a few more details about this little honey.....i have discovered the wiring seems to be correct to 2 of the 3 switches. the humbucker switch was the wrong type and the problem with the neck pickup is in the pickup itself.in the picture of the bottom strap button you can see it was jammed into the wood with considerable force. well, i also discovered that the wood at the base of the neck pocket was broken too, most likely in the same incident. that shock to the guitar seems to have broken loose one of the leads inside the neck pickup. the best thing i discovered is that the pickup not wax potted, and is indeed a double wound pickup. there were 4 wires coming off the bobbin. i could read 2 distinctly separate coils, but i could not see how the coils were wound together. the ohm meter readings were different for each winding, (i didn't record them on paper, but i will have to open it again to try to effect a functional repair at a later time.)

Absolutely; I have 3 MIKs - AFAIK! - and like them all very much!! The SP1012 is fast becoming my go-to guitar; whilst the rest I have here are broken down into their constituent bits, the Spectrum II is still on the stand in one piece! Even the Pantera is packed away!!

I have discovered that I can play "Satch Boogie" on the SP1012 reasonably well, but appallingly on everything else... why is that?!

_________________FWIW, an after market esoteric nut is a solution to a problem that doesn't exist, and a great way to convert your money into someone else’s.